careadhd.co.uk

I was diagnosed with ADHD over 20 weeks ago through Right to Choose, the NHS route that's supposed t

I was diagnosed with ADHD over 20 weeks ago through Right to Choose, the NHS route that's supposed to give you faster access to care. I have still not had a titration appointment. I have not had any meaningful contact about when that might happen. I am just waiting, indefinitely, with no information and no support.
What I wasn't told about getting an adult ADHD diagnosis was that the diagnosis itself can make things worse before treatment even begins. The research is clear that some patients experience temporary symptom worsening after diagnosis, thanks to increased self-awareness and the breakdown of the compensatory mechanisms you'd spent years building without even knowing it. You finally understand why your brain has worked against you your whole life, and then you are left completely alone with that knowledge, with no medication, no structure, no timeline, and no one picking up the phone. That to me isn't healthcare, it is cruelty by neglect.

What ADHD actually does to us clear. A review i found of 351 studies found that without treatment, people with ADHD had worse long-term outcomes across every single category measured: academic, occupational, social, self-esteem, and that treatment consistently improved those outcomes. (PubMed Centra I can't link, look it up). Every week I sit here waiting is a week of measurable, unnecessary damage to my work, my relationships, and my mental health and that it didn't need to happen.
And then I made the mistake of reading the other reviews here. People waiting far longer than me, people who were diagnosed and then simply forgotten. If the reviews are anything to go by, my wait isn't nearly over, and that makes me sick. To everyone else sitting in the same position, I am so sorry. You deserved better than this. We all do.
Care ADHD took NHS resource, handed me a diagnosis, and then vanished. That is not care. That is not what Right to Choose was designed to deliver. It is the worst failure of the system dressed up in branding that implies someone gives a damn. (I don't care about your hiring more people excuse, that's a business failure you're making a patient problem).
Do not use this provider through Right to Choose, or privately if you want care. There are better options, and you deserve actual treatment, not just a diagnosis that dumps you back at the start with nowhere to go.

Date of experience: Mar 26, 2026